Mary Laura Philpott’s son was six years old when he uttered the words that would a decade later become the title of her first collection of essays.
Philpott, an author, cartoonist, and Emmy-winning co-host of Nashville Public Television’s literary interview show A Word on Words, overheard her son talking to himself, and said,
“I miss you when I blink.”
The words became a mantra, pulling her back into the present when life moved too fast, which was often. So often in fact, Philpott began to feel like life was passing her by. Not only did she miss moments, but she missed herself. A wife, a mother, a school volunteer—it was all important work, but was it everything?
In I Miss You When I Blink, Philpott explores what it means to reinvent yourself without abandoning your life and family. Funny and poignant, Philpott makes starting over not only okay, but also doable. — Kate Parrish
Lindsey Grace Whiddon
Age: 44
Deciding to write a book:
A contributor to publications like the Washington Post and the New York Times, Philpott found herself with a stockpile of published essays, plus her unpublished work. She’d considered writing a memoir but still felt drawn to essays. What resulted was a memoir-in-essays.
“At some point,” she recalls, “those two tracks came together. It was a great relief because then you have a purpose.”
“Wild, but for real people”:
Philpott wasn’t sure where her book would fit in the world of memoirs and personal essays. Hers was not a story of an epic battle against nature or a how-to on selling everything and joining the circus. But a walk around Radnor Lake one day would answer her question. She overheard one woman tell another how hiking helped clear her mind but that she would never do a long hike like Cheryl Strayed, author of the mega-famous memoir-turned-film, Wild.
“The friend said, ‘Oh, I totally get it. I need Wild, but for real people,’” recalls Philpott.
It clicked. That’s what her book was: a reinvention story for everyone else.
Making changes:
“I would love to ‘Under the Tuscan Sun’ my life sometimes,” jokes Philpott,
referencing another famous memoir in which a woman leaves everything behind to buy a house in Italy.
“But I cannot do that right now. And I don’t want to do that,” she says. “I love my family. I love my friends. I didn’t want to throw my life away.”
For Philpott, making changes could mean leaving a job she didn’t like, quitting the PTO, or moving back to Nashville five years ago from Atlanta.
“There’s a place for a narrative that says you can change your life without blowing up your life.”
I Miss You When I Blink (Atria Books) is available April 2. Join Mary Laura Philpott for a book launch party and reading at Parnassus Books on April 1 at 6:30 p.m.